A Song of Ice and Fire, #3
A Storm of Swords
by George R. R. Martin
Contents
CHAPTER 75: SAMWELL
Overview
Sam returns to a transformed Castle Black, where Stannis’s host occupies the ruins and Mance Rayder sits captive. Gilly nurses Mance’s son under Val’s eye, while rumors say Melisandre will burn Mance. Jon, sidelined and slandered, trains recruits as the Lord Commander election stalls and Janos Slynt gains crucial support. Sam weighs lying to send Gilly and the babe to Horn Hill, revealing the mounting moral and political pressures.
Summary
Sam, Gilly, and Jon visit Val as Gilly nurses Mance Rayder’s unnamed infant, noting the wildling custom of withholding names. Sam learns how Stannis landed at Eastwatch and crushed Mance’s host. Castle Black is crowded with the king’s soldiers and strange banners; stories spread of Melisandre and a glowing sword.
Val insists Mance should see his son, but Jon says only Maester Aemon may visit the prisoner and that Mance, as a deserter, faces death—perhaps by Melisandre’s fire. Outside, Jon cautions Sam that he cannot keep Gilly. Sam floats a plan to send Gilly and the child to Horn Hill by claiming the boy as his bastard; Jon warns of Lord Randyll’s wrath if deceived.
Jon, mistrusted by Ser Alliser and others, spends his days training recruits, nursing wounds, and brooding over crypt-dreams. Sam, bound by oaths, withholds news that Bran lives. In the maester’s crowded chambers Sam tallies election votes and sees Janos Slynt steadily rising while Denys Mallister and Cotter Pyke slip.
At supper, tensions sharpen: Bowen Marsh publicly withdraws and backs Slynt, while Ser Alliser whispers with Othell Yarwyck. After the secret ballot, counts confirm no consensus—Slynt gains but remains third. In private, Sam concludes that only uniting Pyke and Mallister can stop Slynt, yet despairs of having the courage to act.
Who Appears
- Samwell TarlyNarrator; returns to Castle Black, aids Aemon, tallies votes, and considers lying to protect Gilly and the child.
- Jon SnowWeary and mistrusted; trains recruits, barred from duty, refuses Val’s request, warns Sam about deception.
- GillyCraster’s daughter-wife; nurses Mance’s son and contemplates Sam’s plan to go to Horn Hill.
- ValWildling ‘princess’; urges that Mance see his child and reports talk of Melisandre burning him.
- Maester AemonVisits Mance, oversees the wounded and the ballot counts, counsels patience in the choosing.
- Janos SlyntCandidate for Lord Commander; gains momentum and key public endorsement from Bowen Marsh.
- Bowen MarshWounded steward; withdraws his candidacy and openly backs Janos Slynt.
- Ser Denys MallisterShadow Tower commander; leading candidate but losing votes as the deadlock deepens.
- Cotter PykeEastwatch commander; strong contender yet also slipping in the prolonged vote.
- Melisandre of AsshaiStannis’s red priestess; rumored to plan burning Mance, emblem of queen’s men’s fervor.
- Stannis BaratheonKing who seized the field at the Wall; his host occupies Castle Black and enforces order.
- Mance RayderCaptured King-beyond-the-Wall; isolated prisoner, father of the infant Gilly nurses.
- Pyp (Pypar)Sam’s friend; trades jests, urges Sam’s stature, shares a private drink after the vote.
- GrennSam’s friend; supports Jon, jokes with Pyp, encourages Sam’s potential influence.
- Dolorous Edd TollettGloomy brother; self-deprecating speech before the vote; receives stray votes.
- ClydasAemon’s helper; tends wounded and double-checks Sam’s ballot counts.
- Ser Alliser ThorneJon’s detractor; whispers with Othell Yarwyck, fuels accusations of treachery.
- Othell YarwyckBuilder and candidate; losing support, confers with Ser Alliser.
- Three-Finger HobbCook and token candidate; serves tough mammoth, inexplicably draws a few votes.